What Follows
by ionica01
Summary: Momo and Shouto are fake dating. This is what happens behind the cameras. Or five times they fail to tell each other how they feel and one time they don't.


Hello!  
Courtesy of a prompt on tumblr, I ended up with another 4k oneshot. Fake dating aus are my jam, so I hope you'll enjoy reading this- it's rather short compared to all the ideas I had, and maybe it doesn't encompass all of the fake dating tropes, but it's very close to my heart.  
Anyway, enough blabbering! Hope you enjoy!

* * *

At first it was easy. They had to get in on a party for couples on a cruiser- so they just pretended. Sure, the media jumped to conclusions, but the villain was caught and the mission accomplished, so they more or less rolled with it, while knowing it was just an act. Then their families found out, and they couldn't shake them off. They figured that at some point, they'll just tell them they broke up- it happens all the time, right?

And then Todoroki started calling her by her first name when they were alone.

Momo didn't mind it- they were good friends, so the familiarity made her comfortable, if anything. What scared her was the way his voice warmed her insides, and yet managed to give her goosebumps at the same time. What startled her was the way his fingers, barely brushing her skin, made her bite her lower lip to keep in the question pounding in her mind. What bothered her was the imperious need to dig her nails into her skin to keep from lacing her fingers with his.

Momo has been denying it for a week, then for a month, which turned into two, but she now has to accept it. She likes Todoroki Shouto.

And she doesn't know where to lock these feelings up.

"So, when's the wedding?"

Momo jolts, raising her eyes only to be blinded by the flashes of a dozen cameras at the same time. Right, she and her "boyfriend" are in the middle of a press conference. It's been going on for the last hour, and with the subject of heroics professionally ignored and that of Midoriya and Ochako's upcoming wedding exhausted, the questions levitate back towards her and Todoroki.

She bites her lower lip, trying to come up with an answer that won't push them even further down the rabbit hole. Todoroki speaks before she even formulates an appropriate message, "If we're going to start a family, we'd like to do so in a safer world. We're working towards creating that world right now."

He offers her one of his rare smiles. While the journalists swoon at the gesture they interpret as love, Momo reads the tiredness in his curled lips, and finds herself wondering yet again why Todoroki is going along with this farce. It's probably because Endeavour found out about it, which renders it impossible for Todoroki to back out. A a part of her hopes that's not the only reason.

The other part of her wonders how long they can keep up the charade before it becomes a mess they can't get out of.

/

Shouto loosens his tie as he follows Momo out of the blinding lights shone upon them and into the darker hallways of the studio. He hates having to be all dressed up, feels stiff in a suit that doesn't have the faintest connection with his work as a hero.

"Finally," Momo mutters. She tucks a rebel strand of hair behind her ear and her shoulders slump as they step into the shadows the tall buildings are casting on the pavement outside. The sun has set in the time they spent inside, tied to their chairs by the loads of questions the journalists threw at them.

If there's something he likes about this excuse for a gossip session, is that he gets to sit next to Momo and to walk her home afterwards. The dress that hugs her body and the discreet makeup that shines in the streetlight is enough to make her gorgeous, and the tired onyx eyes that sparkle when she talks to him- and that Shouto is sure could pierce through his soul if she wanted them to- fascinate him, and he's sure he could spend a lifetime with her and still be surprised by her intelligence and beauty.

And then, without warning, he drops his head on her shoulder and nuzzles into the crook of her neck. She smells of delicate perfume and conditioner, and of what Shouto wants to start calling home.

He doesn't miss her jolt of surprise and his lips curve against her skin. "Todoroki-kun?" His hidden smile widens- he's needed two days to convince her to drop the _san_ in favour of the _kun_ \- how long would it take for her to call him just Todoroki?

"I'm recharging," he mutters, voice muffled by the strap of her red dress, but he knows she'll still hear him. He faintly recalls hearing the line in one of Fuyumi-nee's dramas and thinking it was cheesy at the time. Now, he understands the truth behind those words, as he feels he could stay there however long.

Suddenly, Momo's fingers tug at his hair. It's light at first, as she shyly fumbles her way through the uncharted territory of his locks, but as he nuzzles closer to her, a giggle bubbles out of the woman and her nails scrape the skin on his head. A murmured approval ripples through his throat and he slowly turns on his side, watching her through half-opened eyelids.

He doesn't know when he started liking her- it could have been two weeks after their so called "dating" started, when he bumped into her in the supermarket and learnt that even shorts and a baggy Earphone Jack shirt can take his breath away if she's wearing them, or maybe from the very beginning, or perhaps even before that, when she blew him away with her endless knowledge on weaponry.

He knows when he became aware of it, though.

As Iida-san put it, people don't truly appreciate what they have until they almost lose it- he should know better than anyone, given that he's stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Shouto himself didn't know he couldn't picture a life without Momo until he almost had to endure such a relaity.

" _Yaoyorozu!" the scream crawls out of Shouto's throat and his eyes widen with terror as he runs towards her with speed he didn't know he possessed, catching her right before she collides with the ground. Her body is hot, her arms covered in red splotches where his fire has bitten patches of her fair skin._

 _He brings his right ear- the one that isn't drumming after the collision with a brick wall- to her chest. Her heart is quiet, but it's still pumping. His shaky hand checks for her pulse- she's alive._

" _Yaoyorozu…" She doesn't even bat her eyelashes. There's dried blood all over her face, her arms, her chest. Shouto can't help but notice the burnt ends of her hair, once so long, now cut by a brutal knife and laying with the destroyed buildings and shreds of glass._

 _His forehead presses against hers, and he calls out her name again and again. He doesn't know what else to do. He knows the ambulance is on its way, the police is already there, and someone is calling his hero name- probably Midoriya- but he can't look away from her._

 _All he can do is close his eyes and let a wave of nausea wash over him. He couldn't protect her. He caught the villain, but not before he pushed her into the flames- his flames. Not before the breath was knocked out of her with the same staff she created._

 _His breath comes out ragged over her cheeks as memories haunt him. His fire quirk is a curse after all. It hurt his mother, and now it hurt her. Shouto cradles her closer into his arms and whispers, "You can't leave me." Fear spider-crawls down his spine, weaving its web through his every bone. "I need you, Momo."_

 _The fear rolls down his cheek in wet droplets. He flinches when a shaking thumb brushes them away, and his eyes flutter open to see that Yaoyorozu is awake, and that her face is incredibly pale. She opens her mouth to say something, but Shouto shuts her up by kissing her forehead gently._

 _His mind suddenly clears and he realizes he should stop her blood from leaking out of her injured leg and bring her to the incoming ambulance. When he picks her up, she leans her head against his shoulder and mutters, "I'm not leaving," before closing her eyes again._

Shouto grabs her hand, the one that's now tracing a path carved by her nails into his hair, and laces his fingers with hers. Pink dusts her cheeks- a colour that suits her- as her eyes fall onto their locked hands. Her hand fits in his perfectly- and as long as he's holding it, Shouto knows she's not going anywhere.

"Let's go home," he says and leads the way. Momo squeezes his hand back.

What' behind the cameras is real, Shouto tells himself. A small voice in his head whispers _For how long?_

/

They avoid going out together as much as they can without starting a rumor that they broke up or had a fight, because sometimes, they just want to stay indoors and marathon Disney movies. Tonight is one of those _sometimes-_ Todoroki brought the DVDs and Momo made nachos while he built up the pillow fort.

"What do you want to watch tonight?" Shouto asks, spreading out the DVDs on the floor as she places the bowl of nachos and the salsa and cheese sauce next to them, and then takes up her usual spot next to him. He brought The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, Tangled and The Princess and the Frog.

She hums as she ponders her choice. "We haven't seen Aladdin in a while, have we?"

Todoroki looks at her, slightly amused, "You're just weak against Aladdin and Robin Williams' Genie."

Why does he know her so well? "Can you blame me?" She drapes the blanket over her lap and fakes a pout that makes Todoroki chuckle as he pushes the disc into the player. It feels like they're back in the dorms and Todoroki is singing along to the songs, surprising the rest of their class, all over again.

Just like back then, he sings the intro to the movie, and Momo can't help but giggle as he impersonates the merchant. It's such a childish thing to do, and warmth floods her at the thought that only she can see this side of him. Her overthinking gets the better of her though- when he'll fall in love with someone, these peaceful times will surely come to an end.

She mentally slaps herself and leans into the pillows, shifting her focus to the movie. _You gotta live in the moment more, Yaomomo_ , Jirou always tells her. It's time to finally listen to her advice.

Maybe she lives the moment too much, though, because halfway through the movie, she snuggles closer to Todoroki. Fall is coming, and the chilly air coming through the window gives her goosebumps, despite the blanket, so she leans into his left, warm side without realising it. Until he flinches, that is.

She immediately jolts upright and yelps, "I'm sorry!" as she curls into herself. What was she doing, barging into his personal space like that?! They aren't _dating_ , she can't just touch him without his consent!

"Momo." He pauses the video and she can feel his eyes now fixed on her, but doesn't meet his gaze. She's sure she's blushing in embarrassment, and thanks the low light of the TV screen for partially hiding it.

Uncomfortable silence lingers between them, heavy with the implications of crossing the line. Or at least so Momo interprets it until Todoroki's hand covers hers and he says, "I'm sorry." She finally looks up to him, but now he's the one looking away, and she can't make out the sort of expression he wears.

"No, I just shouldn't have-"

"I hurt you."

Momo blinks a few times. "What?"

"My fire quirk," Shouto explains and finally turns her way, still avoiding her eyes. Instead, he tracks the burn marks on her arm with his other hand, his cold fingers outlining the contour of her scars. "I don't want to- even accidentally, I don't want to hurt you again."

Pain and remorse veil his voice, and a part of Momo's heart breaks along with his hesitation to express his fear. She brings her other hand atop of his, stops him from looking at her scars and finally traps his mismatched eyes into her stare. "You didn't hurt me, Todoroki-kun. If you weren't there, I might not be here anymore."

He frowns at her words, but it's the reality of their work. Softly, she leans into his warm side again. He shivers, she can feel it, but she doesn't let him pull away this time. "You're warm, and so is your fire, Todoroki-kun. It saved many people, including me."

He rests his head on the top of hers, and she feels him relaxing under her touch. She knows her short hair brings him unpleasant memories of that fight, and she tries to conceal her scars as much as possible out of respect for him- but she needs to tell him how wonderful both of his quirks are, and how many times they saved her and countless other innocent people.

"Thank you," he eventually mutters.

"I'm the one who should be thanking you." She looks up at him, and sure enough, he's smiling down at her, too. "Both your quirks make you Todoroki-kun, and I like you as you are. No substitutions, exchanges or refunds."

He laughs softly at the Aladdin reference and nuzzles his nose into her hair as he presses play again. If Momo didn't know it was highly unlikely, she would have sworn he kisses the top of her head. What she can be sure of, however, is that he drapes a hand around her waist and pulls her closer. She doesn't object the proximity- after all, it's getting chilly.

/

Shouto hates having to decide what's true and what's fake in their relationship. From his side, he knows every gesture of affection is genuine, but coating it with the pretense of dating her drives him crazy. It would be so easy to reach out for her, brush her cheek and taste her lipstick, so easy to tell her she's irreplaceable, so easy to spend everyday watching her read, the way he does now.

But they're in public, and no matter how much he ignores them, Shouto can hear the whispers around them. The fact that they drink tea in a coffee shop just like average office workers still baffles people, but Momo seems to not even notice as she turns yet another page of her novel.

Shouto himself returns to his laptop screen, scrolling down the page of tuxes. Other than his dangerous workline and insecure love life, he also has to deal with Midoriya's wedding. As one of the best men, he has to assist Midoriya in planning the perfect wedding- and with Bakugou as the other best man, he sure has his work cut out for him.

He must be frowning hard, because Momo asks, "Nothing yet?" Shouto's stifled groan must be enough of an answer, because she offers, "Want some help?"

Before Shouto even nods, she has bookmarked her page and pulls her chair closer to him. They keep scrolling down the catalogues of different stores, keeping tabs open for the suits that sparkle their interest. Momo's taste in clothes is flawless, but what's truly impressive is that she also knows what materials are the most comfortable to move around in and to what weather each of them is suited.

"What dress will you be wearing?" Shouto asks her.

She seems surprised by the question, but answers nonetheless. That's what makes Momo so comfortable to be around- she doesn't try to understand everything about him, gives him space to be himself while comprehending all the essential parts of his personality. "It's a dark red gown- fits with the pink aesthetic of the wedding."

There's no doubt in Shouto's mind that she'll look breathtaking in it, and part of him finds comfort in the thought that she's his date for the reception, so no other guy can steal her. If she likes someone else though… That's an entirely different train of thought Shouto doesn't want to entertain.

"Then I'll have to search for a red tie to match."

Momo hides her pink cheeks behind her growing hair- it's almost shoulder length now- sending another wave of conflicting feelings through Shouto. He should just tell her how he feels already, but the mere possibility of ruining this friendship crushes him.

Deep down, he's aware she'd never push him away, even if she didn't reciprocate his feelings. The problem lies with him- he doesn't think he could see her being by another man's side- and who would be so stupid as to not want her, really?

So Shouto swallows his desire to kiss her and wake up next to her in the early morning and tries to be content with holding her hand and watching Disney movies together.

/

"You two are so. Stupid," Kyouka spares her no ounce of her true thoughts, punctuating her harsh words with proper intonation. "How can you both be so oblivious?"

"You think he likes me?" Momo asks as they shuffle around the venue for the reception, arranging the flowers in the vases and fixing the last details before they start dressing up for the big day.

Kyouka rolls her eyes. "Everybody except for you can see it. Honestly Yaomomo, I sometimes even forget you're _fake_ dating." Momo couldn't keep their real situation a secret from her best friend- not when she needed to ask her for advice.

"But what if I ruin it all? I mean, I can't be good-"

"Let me stop you right there, because if you say you aren't good enough for him, I'll slap you right now, best friends or not. You need to take your chances, girl. Would you rather some chick steals him?"

"No," Momo admits, biting her lower lip.

Kyouka reads the worry lingering in the set of her jaw and sighs. "Even if, in an absurd scenario set in an alternative universe, he didn't like you, it wouldn't be the end of the world. He'd still be your friend, we'd still be here with plenty of ice cream and tissues and bad dramas, and there are other fish in the sea."

Momo smiles wearily and welcomes Kyouka's hug. She suddenly feels small, despite being taller than her best friend. "You're right."

"Damn straight I am!" she sounds so smug Momo can't help the laugh bubbling out of her. "And now we go back to get you sparkling for this party so you can sweep him off his feet."

"Wait, you're saying I should tell him _tonight_?"

"Is there a better time than a party with romantic music where you'll look dazzling?" Kyouka smirks.

"I'm not ready!" Momo protests.

"Nonsense. You're as ready as you'll ever be." She can't deny that.

Maybe it's finally time to face the music.

/

Momo is beautiful without trying, but with the gentle eyeliner and velvet dress, her hair pulled back from her face in a bun and her red makeup bringing out her fair skin, Shouto has a hard time finding his words. Eventually, he manages an eloquent, "Waw."

"You look quite handsome, too," Momo laughs, and Shouto is reminded of their difference in experience. She's been to parties ever since she was old enough to walk, whereas he still feels uncomfortable in the black tux.

"You're beautiful." It's an understatement, but it makes her duck her head, and Shouto's chest swells with a stupid feeling of pride at knowing that his words have such an effect on her. When he holds out his hand, she slides her fingers between his with practiced ease.

The wedding is a success- everything goes smoothly, Bakugou grumbles less than his usual quota and Uraraka beams all throughout the vows, despite the tears rolling down her face- Jirou mumbles something about the blessing of waterproof mascara. Midoriya stumbles over his words, but the raw emotion comes through and everyone cooes several times during the ceremony. Iida, being he proud godfather he is, sheds a river of tears and needs Hatsume to take over the bulk of their shared duties. All in all, it's a moment the couple and their close friends won't forget anytime soon.

As they change venues for the reception, Shouto joins Momo once again. Her eyes are watery, and she's still holding the bouquet that landed in her arms when Ochako aimlessly threw it. "I'm so happy for them!"

Shouto recalls the warm, bone-crushing hug Midoriya graced him with, and smiles fondly. "Me too." He steals a sideway glance at Momo, only to meet her own stealthy look and they exchange a coy smile. If this wedding made Shouto realise anything, is that he wants Momo walking down the aisle when he'll be waiting at the other end.

Maybe it's the alcohol that makes him act on it, or the slow-paced song, or being surrounded by couples, but Shouto invites Momo to the first dance of the evening. She gracefully takes his hand and they make for the dance ring. Shouto hasn't danced with her since high school, but even four years later, his hands fit on her waist, and hers circle his neck like they've done it so many times before.

And then they just spin, her onyx eyes stuck on his, her bare back warm under his fingers, the low cut of her dress attracting not few eyes. Shouto isn't sure whether it's jealousy or greed that makes him kiss her, but he allows himself to be selfish once again, just like he has been over the past few months in their "relationship".

Her lips are soft and surprised, but she soon kisses him back. It's clumsy and they're out of breath too fast, but they're drawn back to each other as soon as they fill their lungs with air, and Shouto remembers to breathe this time. He's never kissed her before, neither for the cameras nor to prove anything to anyone, and he's glad he gets to kiss her for the first time now, when he plans on confessing.

They've spinned to a more secluded area without realising, and when Momo initiates the third kiss, he pushes them both on the balcony, where there isn't anyone. It feels like a small eternity before either of them pulls for air, as their find their pace and track new territory, and Shouto wonders if it has always been this easy to be with her.

Eventually, one of them has to talk It's her that leans her forehead against his and whispers, "I-"

But Shouto silences her with another soft kiss, because he wants to say it, wants to do this properly. "I like you, Momo. Well, the more accurate phrase would be that I'm falling for you." He brushes her cheek, and her skin is soft under his rough thumbs. "Can we try this- us? Not just for the media or for our families. I want to-"

It's Momo's turn to be bold. She kisses him again, and he understands that's her answer, but she still says, "I'd love to give us a try. Because I think I may be, as you put it, falling for you too, Todoroki-kun."

She's laughing, but there are tears pricking at the corners of her eyes, and Shouto hugs her close, finally able to reach out for her. All his worries evaporate just like that, his pinning feels stupid, his worries even dumber, and for the first time in a long time, he feels simply _happy._

There's so much that's left unsaid. _For how long, when, why now?_ But the only question that gets an answer is _what follows?_

 _Them_. Hand in hand, walking back inside to their friends, listening to their bitching about how stupidly oblivious they were, more going out for coffee, more nuzzling under the covers for movies, more kisses, waking up next to each other, eventually moving in, one day going down the aisle. What follows is _them_ , and that's all they need to know.

* * *

Hi guys!  
Those of you who follow my insta know I've been working on this! (it's lowrites if you want to be up to date with what I'm working on or why d&e/a cup of magic haven't been updated etc) Hopefully you've enjoyed it! I had a blast writing it, tho selecting which scenes to write and which not to was HARD. If you want more of it, let me know in the reviews! (tho chances are this isn't my last time tackling this favourite trope of mine). Also my tumblr is ionica01 if you're interested~  
Thanks for reading lovely people and let's meet again!


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